A young Sundre ball player recently competed on the national stage at the 2017 U-16 Girls Canadian Fastpitch Championships.
Rachael Weiss, who will soon be starting Grade 11 at Sundre High School, went to Delta, B.C. with the Edmonton River City Hornets, who after winning provincials last month qualified to compete in the national championship as one of four teams from Alberta.
All of the top teams throughout Canada ó 28 altogether ó came to compete in the event, which was held Aug. 8-13. Weiss's team played nine games and finished in fifth place.
The competition was great, she told the Round Up last week.
"We played to our full potential."
That experience stood in contrast to provincials in Sherwood Park earlier in July, when the Hornets placed first and won gold undefeated. Those games were all over after four or five innings ó they usually last seven ó because the Hornets had established such dominating leads.
"We don't have any competition here (in Alberta)," she casually declared.
But Canada's best teams certainly offered some stiff opposition. One of the games was a nail-biter that played out in 11 innings.
"We played the three top B.C. teams," she said, adding, "They always win nationals."
Although her team placed fifth, they nevertheless managed to defeat the B.C. squad that went on to win the championship, and so became the talk of the tournament for that achievement, said her mom Jeanette, adding the Hornets lost only one game throughout their regular season.
Accompanying Rachael to offer support and cheer her on during the championships were her mom, dad Mike, sister Megan, as well as grandparents Rob and Gabriele Grainger. The arrived home on Aug. 14.
Getting involved in playing ball early on, Rachael said she was introduced to the sport at the age of five. Her parents are avid fans of the game and enjoying playing, which naturally led her to eventually pick up a bat.
The shortstop said she enjoys the competitive element of baseball as well as the shared camaraderie of being part of a team.
"I like being with all of the girls, they're like my family."
Going up to bat and trying to crank the hardest possible hit also provides a good energy release, she added.
However, the mental aspect and recovering from an error can represent the greatest hurdle to overcome in baseball, she said.
"There's so much stuff that can get under your skin, and everything is so stressful because if you make a mistake, it's just on you and you feel like you let everybody down. But you didn't, and nobody thinks that but you."
She has no intention of hanging up her ball cap any time soon, and in fact has her sights set on pursuing university-level baseball in the U.S., although she is still considering potential campuses. Her goal is to study sports medicine.
But for the more immediate future, Rachael is already looking ahead to tryouts in the coming weeks and plans to continue playing with the Hornets.
